Opinion: Imagine if the president had trotted out the families of victims killed by African Americans?

President Donald Trump wants you to be afraid of people you shouldn’t fear. He wants that fear to motivate you to support him and his policies. And he is willing to do anything – even exploit the families of crime victims – to do this.

In doing this he drew a direct connection between migrants at the border and criminals.

He said, “These are the American citizens permanently separated from their loved ones. The world permanently being the word that you have to think about. Permanently. They’re not separated a day, two days. Permanently. They were killed by illegal aliens. These are the families that the media ignores.”

The author of a study by the conservative Cato Institute said, "As a percentage of their respective populations, there were 56 percent fewer criminal convictions of illegal immigrants than of native-born Americans in Texas in 2015. The criminal conviction rate for legal immigrants was about 85 percent below the native-born rate."

Scientific studies, not scare tactics

The author of a study published in the journal Criminology actually found that crime goes down in places with higher numbers of undocumented immigrants, saying, "Increases in the undocumented immigrant population within states are associated with significant decreases in the prevalence of violence.”

The pain of those who have lost loved ones to crime – no matter the perpetrator -- is real, and they can express their grief or anger or outrage in any way they choose.

But Trump is using this particular group of victims for political gain.

It should disgust you.

Imagine a president parading before the cameras the families of crime victims killed by African-Americans.

Would that be seen as racist?

Is it any less unfair than taking advantage of families impacted by undocumented immigrants?

How about victims of white criminals?

Imagine a president trotting out before cameras the families of crime victims killed by white perpetrators?

How would that go over?

Or perpetrators only from the South?

Or only from New York City?

Or only with Italian surnames?

Or only Jewish… wait … that has been done before.

During Trump’s press conference with the families of victims killed by undocumented immigrants he said, “I hear that oh, no, this population is safer than the people that live in the country. You’ve heard that, fellows, right? I hear so much. I say is that possible? The answer is not true. You hear like they’re better people than what we have, our citizens. It’s not true.”

Spreading fear and discord

Actually, the part about being safer IS true.

And the claim about being “better” was never made. By anyone. That’s just Trump trying to stir resentment and hate, suggesting you can’t trust immigrants no matter what facts are presented.

Just has he’s done with Muslims. And to a degree with the media. Howling about “fake news.” Calling journalists the “enemy of the people.” All of it for political gain.

The strategy is simple. Ignore the facts. Play to fears and existing prejudices. And if the people you are trying to convince don’t yet have fully developed prejudices, teach them.

Trump has done so with undocumented immigrants. He has done so with Muslims. And I’d guess he’s not finished spreading the seeds of distrust and hate about other groups to audiences old and young.